An introduction to the theory and methodology of linguistics. Topics include the nature of human language as distinct from other communication systems; the subsystems of linguistic knowledge, i.e. sound patterns (phonetics and phonology), word-formation (morphology), sentence structure (syntax) and meaning (semantics); language and the brain; language acquisition; language in sociocultural contexts, historical development of language and language change. The presentation of general principles is supplemented by practical problems in linguistic analyses of different languages.